(color online) (a) PDF, g(r), and partial PDF of EAM MD-derived configurations are plotted. The position of the PDF shoulder has been indicated by the black arrow. (b) Development of the fractional contribution (adding up to 100%) of partial PDFs at the shoulder position. The partial PDFs were weighted by the x-ray scattering factors and compositions for each atomic pairs. The transition temperature, T ^*, from the experimental data, is marked. As temperature decreases, the fraction of solute-solute atomic pairs, notably Cu–Al, increases. The dotted line is a linear fit of Cu–Al data for K, to highlight the increase of Cu–Al pair at T ^*. (c) Fractional contributions (adding up to 100%) of partial pair distribution functions at the shoulder position obtained from MD simulations. Different types of atomic pairs: solvent–solvent (Zr–Zr), solvent-solute (Zr–Cu and Zr–Al), and solute-solute (including Cu–Al, Cu–Cu, and Al–Al). The transition temperature, T ^*, from the experimental data, is also marked by the vertical dotted line. The dashed line is a linear fit of the solute-solute pairs at temperatures above T ^*. With permission from Applied Physics Letters. Copyright 2016 AIP Publishing.