Atomic short-range-order structure in Au-Fe alloys

A recent article by Yoshida, Langmayr, Fratzl, and Vogl using a combination of high-temperature Mössbauer spectroscopy and small-angle x-ray-scattering techniques concludes that ‘‘clustering’’ of Fe atoms does not occur in ${\mathrm{Au}}_{1\mathrm{-}\mathit{x}}$ ${\mathrm{Fe}}_{\mathit{x}}$, with x=0.01, 0.05, and 0.15. Contrary to this finding, our investigations, based upon transmission electron microscopy, small-angle scattering, and x-ray diffuse scattering analyses show that the ‘‘cluster’’ model is the most plausible explanation to the various structural and magnetic observations made so far.