Polyoxolenes may provide a tool for designing paramagnetic molecules with predetermined spin topologies

The development of the chemistry of transition metal complexes formed by o-semiquinonato radical ligands has provided a useful topic for learning how to use chemical methods for obtaining systems with predetermined magnetic properties. Similar complexes can be used as building blocks for assembling magnetically coupled networks with multidimensional extended topologies. The examples reported here show how an appropriate strategy in designing linked semiquinonates can be used to fix the magnetic properties of a collection of paramagnetic centres. (C) 2003 Academic des Sciences. Published by Editions scientifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS.