Semantic Scholar MCP Server
Server Configuration
Describes the environment variables required to run the server.
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| SEMANTIC_SCHOLAR_API_KEY | No | Your Semantic Scholar API key. If not provided, the server will use unauthenticated access with lower rate limits. |
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 |
|---|---|
| tasks | {
"list": {},
"cancel": {},
"requests": {
"tools": {
"call": {}
},
"prompts": {
"get": {}
},
"resources": {
"read": {}
}
}
} |
| tools | {
"listChanged": true
} |
| prompts | {
"listChanged": false
} |
| resources | {
"subscribe": false,
"listChanged": false
} |
| experimental | {} |
Tools
Functions exposed to the LLM to take actions
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 16 tools
Most tools have clearly distinct purposes targeting different aspects of the Semantic Scholar domain (authors vs. papers, details vs. search vs. recommendations). However, some potential overlap exists between paper_bulk_search, paper_relevance_search, and paper_title_search which could cause confusion about which search tool to use for specific queries.
Excellent naming consistency with a clear pattern throughout. All tools follow a consistent [resource]_[action] structure (e.g., author_search, paper_details, paper_citations), with multi-word actions using underscores consistently (e.g., get_paper_recommendations_multi). No mixing of conventions or inconsistent verb styles.
16 tools is reasonable for a comprehensive academic paper search and analysis server, though slightly on the higher side. The count feels appropriate for covering multiple aspects of the Semantic Scholar API (authors, papers, searches, recommendations, citations/references), though some consolidation might be possible.
The tool set provides excellent coverage of the Semantic Scholar domain with operations for both authors and papers, including search, details, recommendations, and citation analysis. Minor gaps might exist in update/delete operations (though likely not applicable to this read-only academic database) and potentially in filtering/sorting capabilities for search results.