Schema | Paper Download MCP Server

Paper Download MCP Server

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Server Configuration

Describes the environment variables required to run the server.

Name	Required	Description	Default
`PAPER_DOWNLOAD_EMAIL`	Yes	Your email address (required for Unpaywall API compliance). Used for Unpaywall API tracking and contact purposes.
`PAPER_DOWNLOAD_OUTPUT_DIR`	No	Default output directory for downloaded papers.	./downloads

Instructions

Guidance the server publishes about itself, which clients place ahead of the tool catalog so the model reads it before choosing anything.

This server publishes no instructions, or was last inspected before Glama recorded them.

Capabilities

Features and capabilities supported by this server

Protocol revision2025-11-25

Capability	Details
`tools`	{ "listChanged": false }
`prompts`	{ "listChanged": false }
`resources`	{ "subscribe": false, "listChanged": false }
`experimental`	{}

Tools

Functions exposed to the LLM to take actions

Name Description

Name	Description
paper_downloadA	Download academic paper by DOI, arXiv ID, or URL. Prioritizes open access sources (Unpaywall, arXiv, CORE) before Sci-Hub. Sources: Unpaywall (OA), arXiv (OA), CORE (OA), Sci-Hub (last resort) Args: identifier: DOI, arXiv ID, or URL output_dir: Save directory (default: './downloads') Returns: Markdown with file path, metadata, source, or error message Examples: paper_download("10.1038/nature12373") # DOI paper_download("2301.00001") # arXiv ID paper_download("https://arxiv.org/abs/2301.00001") # URL
paper_batch_downloadA	`Download multiple papers sequentially (1-50 max, 2s delay). Prioritizes open access sources (Unpaywall, arXiv, CORE) before Sci-Hub. Args: identifiers: List of DOIs, arXiv IDs, or URLs output_dir: Save directory (default: './downloads') Returns: Markdown summary with statistics, successes, and failures Examples: paper_batch_download(["10.1038/nature12373", "2301.00001"]) paper_batch_download(dois, "/papers")`
paper_metadataA	`Get paper metadata without downloading (fast, <1s). Sources: Unpaywall, Crossref, arXiv APIs Returns: title, authors, year, journal, OA status, available sources Args: identifier: DOI, arXiv ID, or URL Returns: JSON with metadata fields Examples: paper_metadata("10.1038/nature12373") # DOI paper_metadata("2301.00001") # arXiv ID`

paper_downloadA

Download academic paper by DOI, arXiv ID, or URL.

Prioritizes open access sources (Unpaywall, arXiv, CORE) before Sci-Hub.
Sources: Unpaywall (OA), arXiv (OA), CORE (OA), Sci-Hub (last resort)

Args:
    identifier: DOI, arXiv ID, or URL
    output_dir: Save directory (default: './downloads')

Returns:
    Markdown with file path, metadata, source, or error message

Examples:
    paper_download("10.1038/nature12373")  # DOI
    paper_download("2301.00001")  # arXiv ID
    paper_download("https://arxiv.org/abs/2301.00001")  # URL

paper_batch_downloadA

Download multiple papers sequentially (1-50 max, 2s delay).

Prioritizes open access sources (Unpaywall, arXiv, CORE) before Sci-Hub.

Args:
    identifiers: List of DOIs, arXiv IDs, or URLs
    output_dir: Save directory (default: './downloads')

Returns:
    Markdown summary with statistics, successes, and failures

Examples:
    paper_batch_download(["10.1038/nature12373", "2301.00001"])
    paper_batch_download(dois, "/papers")

paper_metadataA

Get paper metadata without downloading (fast, <1s).

Sources: Unpaywall, Crossref, arXiv APIs
Returns: title, authors, year, journal, OA status, available sources

Args:
    identifier: DOI, arXiv ID, or URL

Returns:
    JSON with metadata fields

Examples:
    paper_metadata("10.1038/nature12373")  # DOI
    paper_metadata("2301.00001")  # arXiv ID

Prompts

Interactive templates invoked by user choice

Name	Description
No prompts

Resources

Contextual data attached and managed by the client

Name	Description
No resources

Deploy Server

One endpoint for every MCP toolRayrun runs every MCP server behind one URL and holds the credentials. Each call is decided per client, tool, and argument, then recorded.ray.runAd

TDQS

A4.4/5.0

Scored 2026-04-18 06:50 across 3 tools

Disambiguation5/5

Each tool has a clearly distinct purpose with no ambiguity: paper_batch_download handles multiple papers sequentially, paper_download handles single paper downloads, and paper_metadata retrieves metadata without downloading. The descriptions clearly differentiate between batch processing, single downloads, and metadata-only operations.

Naming Consistency5/5

All three tools follow a perfect verb_noun pattern with consistent snake_case naming: paper_batch_download, paper_download, and paper_metadata. The naming convention is predictable and readable throughout the entire tool set.

Tool Count3/5

With only 3 tools, the set feels somewhat thin for a paper download server that could benefit from additional operations like search, citation management, or format conversion. While the core functionality is covered, the scope could be expanded to provide more comprehensive paper management capabilities.

Completeness4/5

The tool set covers the essential operations for paper downloading and metadata retrieval well, with clear separation between batch and single operations. A minor gap exists in search functionality (finding papers by keyword/topic) and citation-related operations, but the core download workflow is complete and agents can work effectively with what's provided.

Maintenance

ActivityInactive

ResponsivenessUnresponsive

Resources

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