openalex

name	openalex
description	Search academic papers, authors, institutions, and topics via the OpenAlex API (477M+ works). Direct CLI/curl calls, zero token cost when not in use. 논문 검색, 저자 찾기, 인용 확인, 학술 검색, 피인용 수, 학회지 검색, 연구자 찾기, 논문 피인용, 주제별 논문, 학술 트렌드, 저널 프리셋, UTD24 논문
version	1.1
allowed-tools	Bash(openalex *), Bash(curl *), Bash(jq *)

Status: active

/openalex -- Academic Paper & Research Search

OpenAlex is a free, open catalog of the global research system (477M+ works, 90M+ authors).

This skill is the lightweight, token-frugal counterpart to the openalex-research-mcp MCP server in this repo: instead of a persistent server with 31 structured tools, it shells out to a small CLI on demand, so it costs nothing while idle. Use the MCP server inside MCP clients (Claude Desktop, TypingMind); use this skill inside coding agents with shell access.

When NOT to use

• arXiv/SSRN full-text search -> OpenAlex has metadata only, not full text
• Reading a specific paper's full text -> fetch the DOI URL directly
• Getting BibTeX citations -> use CrossRef (https://api.crossref.org/works/<DOI>)

Setup

The skill drives the openalex CLI bundled at skill/bin/openalex (zero dependencies, Python 3). Put it on your PATH:

chmod +x skill/bin/openalex
export PATH="$PWD/skill/bin:$PATH"
# Optional but recommended (faster "polite pool"):
export OPENALEX_EMAIL="[e-mail]"
# Optional (premium): export OPENALEX_API_KEY="..."

Both env vars are optional — OpenAlex serves anonymous requests for free.

Core Patterns — openalex CLI

The CLI handles key/email injection, mandatory select= field trimming (full responses are 3x larger), abstract reconstruction from the inverted index, and DOI→W-id resolution. Add --json for shaped JSON output.

Search works (papers)

openalex works "supply chain network" -n 10
openalex works "structural estimation" --filter "from_publication_date:2024-01-01,cited_by_count:>10"
openalex works "<query>" --abstract        # include reconstructed abstracts

Get a specific work

openalex work 10.3982/ecta7743             # by DOI
openalex work W2070854196 --abstract --refs

Authors (two-step: search name → use the A-id; names are ambiguous, IDs are not)

openalex authors "daron acemoglu" -n 3
openalex author-works A5012301204 -n 10    # top works by citation
openalex experts "CRISPR gene editing" -n 5  # leading authors ON a topic, by h-index

experts resolves the topic to a topics.id and ranks authors who work on it by h-index (unlike authors, which name-matches) — use it to find field leaders.

Institutions / topics / sources

openalex institutions "seoul national university"
openalex topics "supply chain"             # topics replaced "concepts" — never use concept.id
openalex sources "management science"

Citation network & trends

openalex cites 10.3982/ecta7743 -n 10      # papers citing this work (DOI auto-resolved)
openalex work W1234 --refs                 # references of a paper
openalex trend T10539                      # works per year for a topic

Abstract reconstruction

openalex abstract 10.3982/ecta7743         # inverted index → readable text

Raw API (only when the CLI lacks a filter/field)

Base https://api.openalex.org, append &api_key=$OPENALEX_API_KEY (if set, else &mailto=$OPENALEX_EMAIL) and ALWAYS &select= only the fields you need. Filter syntax, sorting, pagination: see references/api-reference.md.

File Index

File	Purpose
bin/openalex	the zero-dependency CLI this skill drives
references/journal-presets.md	ISSN lists for UTD24, FT50, ABS4* venue filtering
references/api-reference.md	Filter syntax, sorting, pagination, autocomplete, error handling

Tips

• Two-step for names: openalex authors first to get the A-id, then openalex author-works — names are ambiguous; IDs are not.
• Empty results? Try: broader date range, fewer filters, alternate spelling, or check the topic/author ID via autocomplete.
• The CLI already enforces select= and reconstructs abstracts — only fall back to raw curl for exotic filters.

Output Contract

All queries produce JSON piped through jq for compact display:

• Work search — array of {title, year, cited, doi, venue, authors} objects
• Author search — array of {id, name, works, cited, inst} objects
• Institution/topic/source search — array of {id, name, works, cited} objects
• Citation network — list of OpenAlex IDs or {title, year, cited} objects
• Abstract — reconstructed plain text string

Present results as a markdown table when >=3 items, inline JSON for 1-2 items. Always include the total count from meta.count when available.