Cern Inspire MCP Server vs Research Chain
A side-by-side look at the Cern Inspire MCP Server and Research Chain MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose Cern Inspire MCP Server for research work as a local process; choose Research Chain for research as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Cern Inspire MCP Server when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Research domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You want tools like
cern_inspire_search_literature, cern_inspire_get_paper, cern_inspire_export_citations.
Choose Research Chain when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Research domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- You want tools like
paper, pmc_full_text, datasets.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Research | Research |
| Quality signal | 56/100 · Good | 55/100 · Good |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | Not declared |
| Pricing | Not declared | Not declared |
| Required env vars | None listed | None listed |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 1 | 0 |
| Directory activity | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 1 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 8 | 7 |
| Full listing | View Cern Inspire MCP Server | View Research Chain |
Tools & capabilities
Cern Inspire MCP Server tools 8
cern_inspire_search_literatureSearch papers with INSPIRE query syntax or free text, filtered by document type, subject, and yearcern_inspire_get_paperFetch one paper's full record by recid, arXiv ID, or DOI, with its HEPData availabilitycern_inspire_export_citationsExport INSPIRE's BibTeX or LaTeX `\bibitem` entries for the papers a query selectscern_inspire_search_authorsFind physicist profiles by name, BAI, ORCID, INSPIRE ID, or author recidcern_inspire_get_citation_summaryh-index, citation totals, citation buckets, and citations per year for one author or any literature querycern_inspire_search_experimentsFind experiments, collaborations, and facilities, with a query that selects their paperscern_inspire_search_hepdataFind HEPData measurement records by process, observable, energy, or collaborationcern_inspire_list_referenceDecode query syntax, identifier forms, filter values, citation buckets, and HEPData DOIs
Research Chain tools 7
papertitle, journal, publisher, authors, Crossref's stated license(s)pmc_full_text`{has_full_text, pmcid, pmid, url}` from NCBI's IDdatasets`{total, returned, results[]}` from DataCite'scode`{zenodo[], paperswithcode}`. Zenodo is searched byciting`{count, top[], note}` from Semantic Scholar: `count` is theretractionderived from the SAME Crossref record already fetched foras_ofISO timestamp of the call.
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
Cern Inspire MCP Server
{
"mcpServers": {
"cern-inspire-mcp-server": {
"command": "bunx",
"args": [
"@cyanheads/cern-inspire-mcp-server@latest"
]
}
}
}
Research Chain
{
"mcpServers": {
"research-chain": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@pipeworx/mcp-research-chain"
]
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Cern Inspire MCP Server is categorized under Research and uses a local stdio subprocess. Research Chain belongs to Research and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Cern Inspire MCP Server for research work and Research Chain for research.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
Cern Inspire MCP Server has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Research Chain has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add cern-inspire-mcp-server and research-chain as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Cern Inspire MCP Server has a quality signal of 56/100 (Good) with 1 views, 0 installs and 1 GitHub stars. Research Chain has 55/100 (Good) with 1 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars.