Academic Search MCP
Server Configuration
Describes the environment variables required to run the server.
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| SEMANTIC_SCHOLAR_API_KEY | No | Optional API key for Semantic Scholar. Without it, requests go through the anonymous shared pool and may be rate-limited. |
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 |
|---|---|
| search_papersB | Relevance search for papers on Semantic Scholar. |
| search_by_topicA | Search papers by topic with an optional year range and filters. |
| fetch_paper_detailsA | Get detailed information about a single paper. |
| get_papers_batchA | Fetch details for many papers in ONE request (up to 500). |
| recommend_papersA | Recommend papers similar to seed papers, via the citation graph. |
Prompts
Interactive templates invoked by user choice
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
No prompts | |
Resources
Contextual data attached and managed by the client
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
No resources | |
TDQS
Scored across 5 tools
Tools have distinct purposes: single/batch fetch, search, and recommendation. The two search tools (search_by_topic, search_papers) have overlapping functionality, but the descriptions clarify that search_by_topic is a convenience wrapper with year range parameters, reducing ambiguity.
All tools follow a verb_noun pattern in snake_case (e.g., fetch_paper_details, get_papers_batch, recommend_papers, search_papers). The slight deviation of search_by_topic (verb_preposition_noun) is minor and still predictable.
Five tools cover the core operations of an academic search server: single/batch retrieval, two search variants, and recommendation. The scope is well-defined, and no tool feels redundant or missing for the stated purpose.
The tool set covers essential tasks: search, retrieve, and recommend. However, it lacks tools for fetching citations, references, or author details, which are common in academic search. This is a minor gap for a complete workflow.