DOI stands for "digital object identifier." It is a sequence of letters and numbers that gives a unique and permanent link to articles that are published within academic/scholarly journals. With a DOI, users can easily cite and reference sources in their own research, ensure attribution, and engage in scholarly communication. A DOI makes citing sources correctly much simpler and ensures that links to articles stay reliable over time.

Where do I find the DOI?

• The DOI is usually located on the first page of a scholarly article in the header or footer.

• A DOI could be a link starting with http:// or https:// OR it could be just the number. See examples below:

How can I use the DOI?

You can search for most (relatively recent) articles by DOI by simply putting the sequence of numbers into a Google search. This will usually bring you to the journal publisher, database, or repository that holds the article. In addition, many DOIs are links that will lead you directly to the article needed. These can be especially helpful in research if you are looking at an article's references and would like to see what articles are being cited as evidence.

Search InfoHawk+ with a DOI

Put the DOI numbers into InfoHawk+ to see if the UI Libraries has access to the article.

Here's an example of searching with a DOI and finding an article that we already have access to:

Here's an example of searching with a DOI and discovering that we will have to get the article through Interlibrary Loan (ILL):
(Hint: doing a search in InfoHawk+ and making the ILL request from there will save you time filling out the request form.)