  Au-Fe alloys are of immense interest due to their biocompatibility, anomalous
hall conductivity, and applications in various medical treatment. However,
irrespective of the method of preparation, they often exhibit a high-level of
disorder, with properties sensitive to the thermal or magnetic annealing
temperatures. We calculate lattice dynamical properties of Au$_{1-x}$Fe$_x$
alloys using density functional theory methods, where, being a multisite
property, reliable interatomic force constant (IFC) calculations in disordered
alloys remain a challenge. We follow a two fold approach: (1) an accurate IFC
calculation in an environment with nominally zero chemical pair correlations to
mimic the homogeneously disordered alloy; and (2) a configurational averaging
for the desired phonon properties (e.g., dispersion, density of states, and
entropy). We find an anomalous change in the IFC's and phonon dispersion (split
bands) near $x$=0.19, which is attributed to the local stiffening of the Au-Au
bonds when Au is in the vicinity of Fe. Other results based on mechanical and
thermo-physical properties reflect a similar anomaly: Phonon entropy, e.g.,
becomes negative below $x$=0.19, suggesting a tendency for chemical unmixing,
reflecting the onset of miscibility gap in the phase diagram. Our results match
fairly well with reported data, wherever available.
