find_alternative
Find alternative electronic components for a given MPN. Get ranked matches with specs, package, and availability, filtered by stock or footprint.
Instructions
Find alternative / second-source components for a given MPN. Returns parts ranked by how closely their specs, package, and category match the reference part, with a match_score and match_notes explaining each match.
When to use:
Original part is out of stock or end-of-life.
You need a cheaper equivalent with similar specs.
You need a second source for supply-chain resilience.
You need a drop-in replacement on an existing PCB (use constraints=['same_package']).
When NOT to use:
You're browsing a category from scratch — use search_parts.
You already have candidates and want a head-to-head comparison — use compare_parts directly.
Behavior:
Eval boards, dev kits, and breakout modules are filtered out — results are IC-level alternatives only.
'same_package' uses fuzzy matching, so SOT-23 ≡ SOT23, SOIC-8 ≡ SOP-8, LQFP64 ≡ TQFP64, etc. Exact string match is not required.
If provider search returns few candidates, the tool falls back to semantic search across extracted datasheets to surface niche alternatives.
The response includes a 'hint' field pointing to compare_parts / read_datasheet for drilling into promising alternatives.
Example: find_alternative('TPS54302', constraints=['same_package', 'in_stock'])
DATASHEET STATUS VALUES:
'ready' — extracted and indexed; call read_datasheet, search_datasheets, or analyze_image.
'extracting' / 'in_progress' / 'queued' / 'pending' — extraction running or scheduled. Poll check_extraction_status every 5-10s until 'ready' or 'failed'. Typical time: 30s-2min.
'not_extracted' — known part but datasheet hasn't been fetched yet. Trigger it via prefetch_datasheets (cheapest) or by calling read_datasheet (auto-triggers on first read).
'no_source' — we couldn't find a public datasheet URL for this MPN. First, retry prefetch_datasheets in 10-30s (the URL resolver re-runs and often finds a source on the second pass). If still 'no_source', the agent can upload the PDF manually via request_datasheet_upload + confirm_datasheet_upload (see those tools). Org-uploaded datasheets are private to the org.
'unsupported' — PDF exists but can't be extracted (scanned image-only, encrypted, or corrupted). Upload a clean text-based PDF via request_datasheet_upload to override.
'failed' / 'error' — extraction errored. The response includes the error reason. Retry via prefetch_datasheets or escalate to support.
'rejected' — input wasn't a real MPN (bare value like '100nF', description, or reference designator). Fix the input and re-call.
'deduplicated' — another part in the family already has this datasheet; same content is returned under the primary MPN.
Input Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| limit | No | Max alternatives to return (default 5, max 20). | |
| constraints | No | Optional filters to narrow alternatives. 'in_stock' = only parts with non-zero stock at any provider. 'same_package' = package footprint must match (fuzzy). 'jlcpcb' = must be available at JLCPCB (useful for JLCPCB-assembled boards — also restricts the provider search to JLCPCB). | |
| part_number | Yes | The MPN to find alternatives for |