  Structural correlations have a significant effect on light propagation in
disordered media. We numerically investigate the role of short-range order in
light absorption in thin films with disordered nanoholes. Two types of
disordered distributions, including stealthy hyperuniform (SHU) and hard disk
(HD) patterns with different degrees of short-range order, are studied. We find
that Bragg scattering induced by short-range order results in the appearance of
a gradually sharper absorption peak with the increasing of degrees of
short-range order ($\chi$, $\phi$). A physical model is proposed to calculate
the in-plane angularly differential scattering cross section $d \sigma^*/d
\theta$ of thin-film nanostructures with consideration of {the} structure
factor $S(q)$. Results reveal that higher level of short-range order can
enhance in-plane Bragg scattering in certain wavelengths and directions
corresponding to rich and sharp peaks in {the} structure factor $S(q)$, which
can further modify morphology-dependent-like resonances of an individual
scatterer {and leads } to {large} improvement of absorptivity in thin films.
Besides, the comparison results show that SHU structures exhibit better
integrated absorption ($IA$) enhancement than both HD and periodic structures.
And there is a transition of local-order phase between hexagonal lattice{s} and
square lattice{s for SHU structures}, leading to an optimal absorption
performance when $\chi$ is around 0.5 of interest. The present study paves a
way in controlling light absorption and scattering using novel disordered
nanostructures.
