A Guided Walk Through Coded Private Information Retrieval

We present an accessible introduction to the field of coded private information retrieval (PIR), aiming to make the subject approachable to newcomers. We start by presenting the fundamental concepts of PIR and its history, concentrating on the information-theoretic setting. We then explore secret sharing schemes and their connection to Reed–Solomon codes, showing how these can be utilized to create PIR schemes. We further show how the performance of these PIR schemes can be enhanced using a refining and lifting technique. We conclude by highlighting some open questions in the field. This article serves as a useful starting point for anyone interested in gaining an understanding of research in the field of coded PIR.