MCP Scholaris

Academic paper search and retrieval via arXiv, Semantic Scholar, PubMed, Unpaywall.

Quick Install

Automated & IDE Setup

Copy the AI prompt to install this server into Claude Code, Cursor, or another agent — or use 1-click editor setup below.

Add to Cursor Add to VS Code

Manual Client & Custom JSON ConfigExpand JSON ▾

Client Config & Setup

Choose your client or environment

Target File:~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mcp-scholaris": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "mcp-scholaris"
      ]
    }
  }
}

💡 Paste the JSON block into your client's configuration file under mcpServers, then restart the application.

Documentation Overview

mcp-scholaris

An MCP server for retrieving academic papers from open access sources. Provides search across arXiv, Semantic Scholar, and PubMed, with full text retrieval via arXiv PDFs, PubMed Central (BioC API), and Unpaywall. No paywalls, no grey area — legitimate open access only.

Installation

Terminal

pip install mcp-scholaris

Tools

`search_papers`

Search for academic papers by topic, author, or keyword.

Parameters:

query (required) — search terms
sources (optional) — list of sources to search: arxiv, semantic_scholar, pubmed. Defaults to all three.
max_results (optional) — maximum results per source. Defaults to 5.

`fetch_paper`

Fetch the full text of a paper. Tries open access sources in order: arXiv → PubMed Central → Unpaywall. Provide at least one identifier.

Parameters:

arxiv_id — e.g. 2301.00001 or arxiv:2301.00001
pubmed_id — PubMed ID (PMID), e.g. 36383508
doi — e.g. 10.1371/journal.pone.0276755

Configuration

Semantic Scholar works without an API key but is rate-limited. For higher limits, create a .env file in your working directory:

Code

SEMANTIC_SCHOLAR_API_KEY=your_key_here

API keys are free at semanticscholar.org.

Usage with an MCP client

Add to your MCP client configuration:

config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "scholaris": {
      "command": "scholaris"
    }
  }
}

Or run directly:

bash

scholaris

The server communicates over stdio using the MCP protocol (JSON-RPC 2.0).

Sources

Source	Search	Full Text
arXiv	✓	✓ PDF
Semantic Scholar	✓	✓ when OA PDF available
PubMed	✓	✓ via BioC API (PMC articles)
Unpaywall	—	✓ for any DOI with OA version

License

MIT

Read the full README →View source on GitHub →

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Frequently Asked Questions about MCP Scholaris

Add the following block to your claude_desktop_config.json under mcpServers: "mcpServers": { "mcp-scholaris": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "mcp-scholaris"] } }

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Technical Specs & Signals

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Documentation Overview

mcp-scholaris

Installation

Terminal

pip install mcp-scholaris

Tools

`search_papers`

Search for academic papers by topic, author, or keyword.

Parameters:

query (required) — search terms
sources (optional) — list of sources to search: arxiv, semantic_scholar, pubmed. Defaults to all three.
max_results (optional) — maximum results per source. Defaults to 5.

`fetch_paper`

Fetch the full text of a paper. Tries open access sources in order: arXiv → PubMed Central → Unpaywall. Provide at least one identifier.

Parameters:

arxiv_id — e.g. 2301.00001 or arxiv:2301.00001
pubmed_id — PubMed ID (PMID), e.g. 36383508
doi — e.g. 10.1371/journal.pone.0276755

Configuration

Semantic Scholar works without an API key but is rate-limited. For higher limits, create a .env file in your working directory:

Code

SEMANTIC_SCHOLAR_API_KEY=your_key_here

API keys are free at semanticscholar.org.

Usage with an MCP client

Add to your MCP client configuration:

config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "scholaris": {
      "command": "scholaris"
    }
  }
}

Or run directly:

bash

scholaris

The server communicates over stdio using the MCP protocol (JSON-RPC 2.0).

Sources

Source	Search	Full Text
arXiv	✓	✓ PDF
Semantic Scholar	✓	✓ when OA PDF available
PubMed	✓	✓ via BioC API (PMC articles)
Unpaywall	—	✓ for any DOI with OA version

License

MIT