paper-finder-student-mcp

# Paper Finder MCP

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Ask your AI to find real scholarly papers for an essay or research project, with authors, year, citation counts, DOIs and a free to read link when one exists. Results come straight from [OpenAlex](https://openalex.org), a free open catalog of more than 250 million works, so the papers are real, not invented.

This is a free, open source [MCP](https://modelcontextprotocol.io) server. It works with Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, VS Code Copilot and any other app that supports MCP. Searches go to the free public OpenAlex service and nothing else. There is no account or key, and nothing is stored.

Free forever. No account and no subscription.

## Quick start

Add this to your AI app's MCP config. For Claude Desktop that is `claude_desktop_config.json`.

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "paper-finder": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "paper-finder-student-mcp"]
    }
  }
}
```

Restart your AI app, then try one of the questions below. You need Node.js 20 or newer.

For Claude Code, run `claude mcp add paper-finder -- npx -y paper-finder-student-mcp`.

## What you can ask

- "Find recent open access papers on spaced repetition and exam performance."
- "Give me the abstract and a free link for 10.1038/nature14539."
- "What papers are related to that one?"
- "Who has cited that paper the most recently?"

## Tools

| Tool | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| `search_papers` | Search scholarly works by keywords, with optional year and open access filters |
| `get_paper` | Details for one paper from its DOI or OpenAlex id, including the abstract |
| `related_papers` | Papers OpenAlex marks as related to a paper |
| `cited_by` | Newer papers that cite a paper |

## Good to know

- Citation counts and open access links come from OpenAlex and can be a little behind the publisher.
- If you want faster, more reliable service for heavy use, set `OPENALEX_EMAIL` to your own email. OpenAlex asks for it so they can reach you, and it is sent only to OpenAlex.
- `OPENALEX_BASE_URL` points the server somewhere else, which the tests use.
- Always read the paper yourself before you cite it. A catalog entry is not the paper.


## Development

```bash
npm install
npm run build
npm test
```

Tests run against a fake OpenAlex server, so they need no network.

## More free student MCP servers

All free, open source and read only where they touch your accounts. Browse the full list at [brightspacemcp.com/more-mcps](https://brightspacemcp.com/more-mcps/).

| Server | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| [Brightspace MCP](https://github.com/AnonymousOnyx22/brightspace-d2l-mcp) | D2L Brightspace for AI. Due dates with real submission status, grades, a target grade calculator and course files. |
| [Canvas MCP](https://github.com/AnonymousOnyx22/canvas-lms-student-mcp) | Read-only Canvas LMS for AI. Due dates, missing work, grades and announcements. |
| [Moodle MCP](https://github.com/AnonymousOnyx22/moodle-student-mcp) | Read-only Moodle for AI. Due dates, overdue work, grades and announcements. |
| [Google Classroom MCP](https://github.com/AnonymousOnyx22/google-classroom-student-mcp) | Read-only Google Classroom for AI. To-do, due dates, missing work and grades. |
| [GPA Calculator MCP](https://github.com/AnonymousOnyx22/gpa-calculator-mcp) | GPA, grade conversion and what-do-I-need-on-the-final math for AI. Works offline, no account. |
| [Citations MCP](https://github.com/AnonymousOnyx22/student-citations-mcp) | APA, MLA and Chicago citations from a DOI, an ISBN or typed details. No account. |
| [Study Planner MCP](https://github.com/AnonymousOnyx22/study-planner-mcp) | Exam study schedules, spaced repetition dates, pomodoro plans and assignment milestones. Works offline. |

## License

MIT