“Anomalies” in the Radial Distribution Functions for Simple Liquids

Subsidiary features appearing in the radial distribution functions obtained by x-ray or neutron diffraction measurements on a number of simple liquids have long been the object of speculation and some controversy. Distribution functions calculated from the configuration data for a computer-simulated model of a dense fluid of Lennard-Jones disks show similar additional structure. In the case of the model system, this additional structure may reflect an alternative configuration for local ordering within the fluid.