Semantic Scholar API
Search and explore scholarly papers, authors, citations, venues, recommendations and related academic graph data through the Semantic Scholar REST API.
Connect this API to an AI agent Browse all specs
What you can do with Semantic Scholar API via MCP
Every endpoint below becomes a governed tool your AI agent (Claude, ChatGPT, or a customer-facing VX agent) can call — with scoped permissions, sandbox testing, and audit logs.
| Method | Path | Operation | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| GET | /paper/search |
SearchPapers | Search papers Method: GET Path: /paper/search IMPORTANT: This function has 1 REQUIRED parameter(s) and 4 OPTIONAL parameter(s) REQUIRED parameters MUST be provided OPTIONAL parameters can be omitted if not needed Parameters: Query Parameters: REQUIRED: - query: Free-text paper search query. OPTIONAL: - limit: Number of papers to return. - offset: Zero-based result offset. - fields: Comma-separated paper fields such as title, abstract, year, authors, citationCount and openAccessPdf. - year: Filter by publication year or year range, for example 2020-2024. |
| GET | /paper/{paper_id} |
GetPaper | Get a paper Method: GET Path: /paper/{paper_id} IMPORTANT: This function has 1 REQUIRED parameter(s) and 1 OPTIONAL parameter(s) REQUIRED parameters MUST be provided OPTIONAL parameters can be omitted if not needed Parameters: Path Parameters: REQUIRED: - paper_id: Semantic Scholar paper ID or supported external identifier. Query Parameters: OPTIONAL: - fields: Comma-separated fields to return. |
| GET | /paper/{paper_id}/citations |
ListPaperCitations | List citations Method: GET Path: /paper/{paper_id}/citations IMPORTANT: This function has 1 REQUIRED parameter(s) and 3 OPTIONAL parameter(s) REQUIRED parameters MUST be provided OPTIONAL parameters can be omitted if not needed Parameters: Path Parameters: REQUIRED: - paper_id: Semantic Scholar paper identifier. Query Parameters: OPTIONAL: - fields: Comma-separated citation paper fields. - limit: Number of citation records to return. - offset: Zero-based result offset. |
Usage guide
## Authentication Request an API key from the [Semantic Scholar API page](https://www.semanticscholar.org/product/api). Send it in the `x-api-key` header. Some endpoints may permit unauthenticated requests, but keyed requests are recommended for reliable quota and production use. ```bash curl -H "x-api-key: YOUR_SEMANTIC_SCHOLAR_KEY" "https://api.semanticscholar.org/graph/v1/paper/search?query=graph%20neural%20networks&limit=10&fields=title,authors,year,abstract" ``` Do not place the key in a public client or commit it to source control. Use the official API documentation for current quotas and field availability.
How to use this spec
- Create a free VX Agents account (sandbox tools included).
- Open the marketplace and connect “Semantic Scholar API” to an agent.
- Expose it as an MCP server for Claude/ChatGPT, or chat with it directly.