---
title: ToolRouter — Agent Use Case Guide
description: Step-by-step guide for completing a task with a specific AI agent using ToolRouter.
url: https://toolrouter.com/tools/academic-research/use-cases/search-papers-by-topic/chatgpt
---
# How to Search Papers by Topic with ChatGPT

ChatGPT makes academic paper discovery accessible by synthesizing search results into narrative summaries. It explains key findings across multiple papers, identifies consensus and disagreement in the field, and helps you understand which papers are essential reading. Research becomes a guided tour rather than a data dump.

## Setup

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

## Steps

1. Configure ToolRouter in ChatGPT
2. Ask: "Search for papers on large language model alignment"
3. ChatGPT returns relevant papers with summaries
4. Request: "Summarize the key findings across these papers"
5. Explore related subtopics

## Example Prompt

```
Find academic papers about the effects of microplastics on human health. Focus on studies from the last three years.
```

## Tips

- ChatGPT can synthesize findings across multiple papers
- Ask for papers that cite or are cited by a key paper to trace research lineage
- Useful for getting up to speed on an unfamiliar field quickly
