Ferrimagnetic Heisenberg chain; influence of a random exchange interaction

We report on the magnetic behavior of ‘‘rigid’’ ferrimagnetic chains isolated in bimetallic complexes of the EDTA and ‘‘flexible’’ ones obtained in the amorphous variety. As shown by LAXS, the only noteworthy difference in the amorphous state is the random distribution of bond angles between nearest neighbors within chains. The ‘‘rigid’’ bimetallic chains in CoNi(EDTA)6H2O are described in terms of Heisenberg model with an exchange coupling J=−7.5 K. The behavior of the amorphous variety somewhat differs, following the law X=AT−0.8 typical of REHAC. A classical spin chain model involving a J distribution and alternating g factors allows to explain successfully the temperature dependence of the susceptibility