Sir: In the range of infrared spectra investigations of molecules physically adsorbed on zeolites,1 we have studied the spectra of methane adsorbed on NaA, CaA, and NaX. After Hirschfelder, the collision diameter is 3.8 Á, but calculations from C-H bond lengths and van der Waals radii for C and H atoms actually yield approximately 4.6 Á. We know the effective diameter of the apertures of NaA (4.2 Á), CaA (5 A), and NaX (8 Á) zeolite cavities;2 therefore, it seems likely that adsorption of methane by the two latter molecular sieves occurs, but in the case of the NaA zeolite, this adsorption is expected to be restricted, due to the small pore size impeding diffusion.The spectra of the three molecular sieves previously desorbed at 400°below 5 X 10~5 Torr1 and then exposed to CH4 at pressures greater than 500 Torr show no absorption bands when the zeolite pellet is at the same temperature as the beam of the spectrophotometer, i.e., 313°K. At 173°K, however, under gas pressures of approximately 20 Torr, we have observed important intensities of CH4 absorption bands in the case of NaX (Figure 1), slightly weaker intensities in the case of CaA, and very weak intensities in the case of NaA. CH4 therefore penetrates the NaA cavities, but the adsorbed amount is very small.There are four fundamental vibration frequencies for CH4: in the gaseous phase, zq and zq are ir active, while zq and z-2 are only Raman active, although zq has never been observed (likely its intensity is too weak). In the adsorbed state, besides the two allowed bands, the forbidden band zq appears with approximately the same intensity as zq and zq, due to the dipole moment induced by the field existing in-side the cavity. The intensity of zq is proportional to (am/ aq)2, i.e., E2(aa/aq)2, so it is proportional to the square of the field, and to the intensity of the Raman band (which accounts for the fact that the zq band is not apparent in the adsorbed phase). The frequencies of CH4 in the adsorbed and gas phases are given in Table I.