We build and analyse the network of 100 top-cited nodes (research papers and books from Google Scholar; the strength or citation of the nodes range from about 44 000 up to 100) starting in early 1980 until last year. These searched publications (papers and books) are based on Quantum Annealing Computation and Information categorized into four different sets: (A) Quantum/Transverse Field Spin Glass Model, (B) Quantum Annealing, (C) Quantum Adiabatic Computation and (D) Quantum Computation Information in the title or abstract of the searched publications. We fitted the growth in the annual number of publication ([Formula: see text]) in each of these four categories, A-D, to the form [Formula: see text] where [Formula: see text] denotes the time in years. We found the scaling time [Formula: see text] to be of the order of about 10 years for categories A and C, whereas [Formula: see text] is of the order of about 5 years for categories B and D. This article is part of the theme issue 'Quantum annealing and computation: challenges and perspectives'.
Keywords: growth time; network growthbehaviour; quantum annealing; quantum computation; research network.