  The role of layer disorder is important in establishing the topological
phases of MoTe${_2}$. A rich tapestry of atomic ordering influences the
structural phase transitions (SPTs), but there is little understanding of the
mechanistic details of the phase transition. An atomistic level study was
conducted to investigate the local structure of the 1$T$$'$ and $T_d$ phases of
MoTe${_2}$ by using the Pair Distribution Function (PDF) technique. While the
average structure exhibits an SPT and co-existence of phases as a function of
temperature, the local structure shows the suppression of SPT at short-range
ordering, and the sample remains in the monoclinic (1$T$$'$) phase at all
measured temperatures. A sharp PDF peak observed at short distances indicated a
strong atom-atom correlation between the Mo and Te atoms within the
Mo-octahedra. In addition, a large box modeling of the PDF data indicated a
preferential motion of Te atoms towards $c$-axis at all temperatures. The
structural defects, such as stacking faults, likely result in the co-existence
of phases in the average structure and suppress the local SPT of MoTe$_2$.
These results are stepping stones in understanding the long-debated origins of
structural, vibrational, and electronic properties of MoTe$_2$ and similar
transition metal dichalcogenides.
