openalex.authors.search
Search 90M+ researcher/author records by display name. Returns OpenAlex author ID, ORCID, works count, total citation count, h-index, and last known institution with country. Useful for identifying a researcher before filtering openalex.works_search results by author, or for author-level impact m...
This record as markdown: /tools/io-github-whiteknightonhorse-apibase/openalex.authors.search.md
What openalex.authors.search does on Apibase
AI agents call openalex.authors.search to retrieve information from Apibase without modifying anything. It is typically the context-gathering step in research, monitoring, and reporting workflows, before the agent takes action elsewhere.
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
query | string | Yes | Search query for researcher/author name (e.g. "marie curie") |
per_page | integer | — | Number of results to return (1-25, default 10) |
Parameters from the server's own tool schema.
Why openalex.authors.search is rated Low
Queries public research metadata; no data modification, deletion, or external action triggered.
From the tool's definition Search 90M+ researcher records. Returns author ID, ORCID, citation count, h-index.
Attacks that exploit this kind of access
The rule that runs openalex.authors.search safely
PolicyLayer is an MCP gateway: it sits between your AI agents and Apibase, and checks every tool call against a rule you set before the call runs. Nothing changes on the server itself. For openalex.authors.search, this is the rule to start with:
openalex.authors.search is read-only, so it stays allowed. Everything else on the server is denied unless you say otherwise.
The button opens the PolicyLayer dashboard: create your workspace, connect Apibase, apply this rule, and every openalex.authors.search call is checked against it from then on.
Questions about openalex.authors.search
Search 90M+ researcher/author records by display name. Returns OpenAlex author ID, ORCID, works count, total citation count, h-index, and last known institution with country. Useful for identifying a researcher before filtering openalex.works_search results by author, or for author-level impact metrics. Data: api.openalex.org, no auth required, CC0 metadata. It is categorised as a Read tool in the Apibase MCP Server, which means it retrieves data without modifying state.
openalex.authors.search accepts 2 parameters: query, per_page. Required: query. The full parameter table on this page comes from the server's own tool schema.
Register the Apibase MCP server in PolicyLayer and add a rule for openalex.authors.search: allow, deny, rate-limit, or require approval. Point your MCP client at the PolicyLayer proxy URL and the rule is enforced on every call, before it reaches Apibase. Nothing to install.
openalex.authors.search is a Read tool with low risk. Read-only tools are generally safe to allow by default.
Yes. Add a rate_limit block to the openalex.authors.search rule in your PolicyLayer policy. For example, setting max: 10 and window: 60 limits the tool to 10 calls per minute. Rate limits are tracked per agent session and reset automatically.
Set action: deny in the PolicyLayer policy for openalex.authors.search. The AI agent will receive a policy violation error and cannot call the tool. You can also include a reason field to explain why the tool is blocked.
openalex.authors.search is provided by the Apibase MCP server (apibase-mcp-client). PolicyLayer sits as a proxy in front of this server to enforce policies before tool calls reach the server.
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