The reactions of 2-hydroxyphenylethanone oxime (Me-H(2)salox) and (2-hydroxy-phenyl)-phenyl-methanone oxime (Ph-H(2)salox) with Mn(ClO4)(2)center dot 6H(2)O in MeOH afford trinuclear manganese complexes of [Mn3O(Me-salox)(3)(MeOH)(3)(ClO4)]center dot MeOH (1.MeOH) and [Mn3O(Ph-salox)(3)(MeOH)(3)(ClO4)]center dot 2MeOH (2.2MeOH), respectively. X-ray analysis shows that both complexes contain a manganese triangle core, [(Mn3O)-O-III](7+). The structural distortion from the twisting of the oxime ligands dominates the ferromagnetic interactions within the three Mn ions in both compounds and results in an S = 6 ground state. The frequency dependence of out-of-phase signals in the alternating current (AC) magnetic susceptibility measurements and the temperature-dependent and sweep-rate-dependent hysteresis loops are indicative of single-molecule magnet behavior. Moreover, both complexes show step-wise magnetization, indicating the occurrence of quantum tunneling of magnetization (QTM). Interestingly, a tail to tail arrangement in the crystal packing of complex 1.MeOH results in strong intermolecular H-bonding interactions and leads to the exchange-bias effect from the antiferromagnetic interaction between the adjacent Mn-3 molecules. In contract, QTM steps of complex 2.2MeOH show an absence of the exchange-bias effect due to a weak intermolecular interaction from a head to tail arrangement. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.