OpenAlex MCP Server

What is OpenAlex MCP Server?

An MCP server that enables academic paper searches via the OpenAlex API, allowing users to find papers by topic, keyword, or author and access detailed information.

How to use OpenAlex MCP Server?

Install dependencies with npm install, build with npm run build, then run with npm start. For Claude Desktop, add the provided JSON configuration pointing to the built dist/index.js.

Key features of OpenAlex MCP Server

• Search papers by topic or keyword.
• Search papers by author.
• Retrieve detailed paper information (title, abstract, authors, citations).

Use cases of OpenAlex MCP Server

• Quickly find academic papers on a research topic.
• Discover papers published by a specific author.
• Access paper metadata and citation counts.
• Integrate scholarly search into AI assistants like Claude.

FAQ from OpenAlex MCP Server

What is the difference between the two search tools?

search-papers finds papers by topic or keyword, while search-papers-by-author finds papers by author name.

What are the runtime requirements for OpenAlex MCP Server?

Node.js is required to run the server, as it is built with JavaScript and commands use node.

Where does the data come from?

All data is retrieved from the OpenAlex API, an open index of scholarly works.

What transports or authentication are needed?

The server uses standard MCP transport (stdio). The README does not specify any special authentication requirements.

Is there a limit on the number of papers returned?

The README does not specify query limits; assume default OpenAlex API limits apply.