Regular Black-Hole Solutions in GR

Updated 5 August 2025

Regular black-hole solutions are spacetime geometries that replace classical singularities with a de Sitter core, ensuring all curvature invariants remain finite.
They achieve regularity by matching a de Sitter interior to a Reissner–Nordström exterior through strict junction conditions and a localized charged shell.
These models offer insights into quantum gravity corrections and gravitational collapse, providing a framework for testing stability and observational signatures.

Regular black-hole solutions are spacetime geometries that satisfy the Einstein field equations (or suitable generalizations) but do not possess curvature singularities in their interiors; all scalar invariants remain finite everywhere, including at what would classically be the singular center. In contrast to the Schwarzschild, Reissner–Nordström (RN), or Kerr–Newman solutions, which exhibit divergence of quantities such as the Kretschmann scalar at $r = 0$ , regular black holes evade these singularities by modifying either the matter content, the spacetime structure, or the dynamical equations in the high-curvature regime. The leading paradigm involves replacing the singluar core by a regular phase, often modeled as a de Sitter region sourced by a suitable matter field, and matching this interior to the classical exterior by means of well-posed junction conditions.

1. Interior Structure and Singular Core Resolution

The archetype of a regular black-hole solution replaces the curvature singularity at the origin with a core region isometric to a de Sitter spacetime. The line element inside a radius $r_0$ takes the form

$ds^2 = -\left[1-\left(\frac{r^2}{R^2}\right)\right] dt^2 + \left[1-\left(\frac{r^2}{R^2}\right)\right]^{-1} dr^2 + r^2(d\theta^2 + \sin^2\theta\, d\phi^2),$

where $R$ is the de Sitter radius determined by the energy density of the interior matter. The source is a “false vacuum” perfect fluid obeying $p = -\rho_m$ , i.e., negative pressure exactly matching the energy density, mimicking a cosmological constant.

All curvature invariants in the core are proportional to the energy density (e.g., $K \propto 1/R^4$ ), and remain finite as $r \to 0$ . Thus, the central singularity inherent to standard black hole solutions is removed, with the regularity guaranteed by the constant vacuum energy and the avoidance of divergent stress-energy components (Lemos et al., 2011).

2. Exterior Solution and Junction Approach

The exterior region ( $r > r_0$ ) is typically described by the classical Reissner–Nordström (or more generally, Kerr–Newman) solution: $ds^2 = -\left[1-\frac{2m}{r}+\frac{q^2}{r^2}\right] dt^2 + \left[1-\frac{2m}{r}+\frac{q^2}{r^2}\right]^{-1} dr^2 + r^2(d\theta^2 + \sin^2\theta\, d\phi^2),$ where $m$ is the total mass and $q$ is the electric charge. The electric potential is $\phi(r) = -q/r$ for $r \ge r_0$ . This region possesses two horizons (event and Cauchy), unless the charge is over-extremal.

Regular solutions are achieved by rigorously matching the de Sitter core to the external RN region at $r = r_0$ . The matching enforces the continuity of both the first and second fundamental forms (metric and extrinsic curvature) via the Israel junction conditions. In these models, the entire electric charge resides on the spherically symmetric boundary “coat” at $r_0$ , represented by a Dirac-delta function in the charge density (Lemos et al., 2011, Uchikata et al., 2012).

3. Junction Conditions and Charged Shell

At the matching radius, the conditions

$1 - \frac{r_0^2}{R^2} = 1 - \frac{2m}{r_0} + \frac{q^2}{r_0^2}$

and other required continuity relations (for pressures, metric derivatives, and electric field profiles) yield constraints among the parameters $R$ , $m$ , $q$ , and $r_0$ .

The junction can be timelike or null:

Timelike: boundary strictly inside the inner (Cauchy) horizon, $r_0 < r_-$ ; the charged shell carries the entire charge.
Null: boundary sits exactly on the inner horizon, $r_0 = r_-$ .

Further, parameter relations such as $Rq=\sqrt{3} r_0^2$ , $m r_0 = \frac{2}{3}q^2$ , and $(1/R^2) = [2m - (q^2/r_0)]/r_0^3$ emerge from the continuity and physical requirements (Lemos et al., 2011). The charge is confined to the shell: $Q(r) = \begin{cases} 0 & r<r_0 \ q & r \ge r_0 \end{cases}$ with surface charge density $\rho_e(r) \propto \delta(r - r_0)$ .

4. Taxonomy of Regular Solutions

Several types of regular black-hole solutions are encompassed by this formalism:

Regular nonextremal black holes (null boundary): de Sitter core matched on the Cauchy horizon ( $r_0 = r_-$ ), boundary is lightlike.
Regular nonextremal black holes (timelike boundary): junction occurs strictly within the Cauchy horizon ( $r_0 < r_-$ ).
Regular extremal black holes: extremal limit with merging horizons ( $r_+ = r_-$ ), e.g., $m = q$ , $r_0 = (2/3) r_+$ .
Overcharged regular objects (“regular stars”): for $q > m$ , no horizon forms—a horizonless, regular charged star remains.

Stability and equilibrium of these thin-shell constructions are investigated through an effective potential approach. For the shell (proper mass $M$ ), the dynamics reduce to

$\dot{R}^2 + V(R) = -1, \qquad V(R) = -\left[\frac{R^3/L^2 + Q^2 R - 2m}{2M} - \frac{M}{2R}\right]^2 - \frac{R^2}{L^2}$

with stationary “equilibrium” solutions found by $V(R) = -1$ and $dV/dR = 0$ (Uchikata et al., 2012). Only configurations with $Q/m > 0.866$ —i.e., highly charged—permit such regular stationary shells, which are stable if $d^2V/dR^2 > 0$ . In the $M \to 0$ (“massless shell”) limit, these reduce to the configurations of Lemos and Zanchin.

5. Physical and Geometrical Features

Key physical features of these regular black holes include:

Regularity: curvature invariants (Ricci scalar, Kretschmann scalar, etc.) remain finite everywhere, including at $r=0$ .
Metric Profile: interior metric is de Sitter, $B(r) = 1 - r^2/R^2$ ; exterior recovers classical RN, $B(r) = 1 - 2m/r + q^2/r^2$ .
Shell/Coat: all charge is localized at the matching radius; matching pure de Sitter to pure Schwarzschild/RN is not possible without such a shell—hence, the shell is mathematically and physically required for a consistent regular solution.
Energy Conditions: the interior satisfies $p = -\rho$ (violates the strong energy condition in the core, as required by the singularity theorems); energy and pressure go to zero at the boundary.
Parameter Constraints: various algebraic relations must be respected for regularity, charge-to-mass ratio, and horizon existence.
Stability: for the dust shell model, stability under radial perturbations is attained for positive shell mass and specific parameter domains (Uchikata et al., 2012).

6. Implications for Gravitational Theory and Observability

Regular black-hole models with de Sitter cores and charged boundary shells have several profound implications for classical and quantum gravity:

Resolution of Curvature Singularities: strong indication that high-curvature effects or quantum corrections may “soften” the singularities expected in classical collapse, at least effectively replacing them with a regular core at the semiclassical or effective field theory level.
Interior Structure and Collapse Dynamics: allows for nontrivial interior phases; e.g., a “false vacuum” region or a phase transition within gravitational collapse, potentially opening new collapse endpoints or pathways for information retention.
Role of Exotic Matter/Phase Boundaries: demonstrates necessity of matter violating standard energy conditions (here, negative pressure) and of thin shell/membrane-like structures at the boundary.
Elementary Particle Models: in certain scale limits (Planck mass/core radius), these solutions may mimic properties desired of gravitating elementary particles.
Stability and Mass Inflation: configurations where the shell sits at the Cauchy horizon ( $r_0 = r_-$ ) may face instability due to mass-inflation effects near the inner horizon, mandating further paper of nonlinear and quantum backreaction (Lemos et al., 2011).
Astrophysical Relevance: realization of such models in nature would require mechanisms for the formation of matter shells; however, observational discrimination from standard RN black holes at macroscopic scales may rely on detailed signatures of horizon structure or interior dynamics.

The de Sitter core + shell + vacuum exterior model serves as a template for a range of extensions:

Nonlinear Electrodynamics and Modified Gravity: Incorporating more general matter couplings (e.g., nonlinear electrodynamics, nonminimal gravity-matter coupling) extends the class of regular solutions to include, for example, Bardeen or Hayward-type black holes with similar core-plus-shell structure but different matching surfaces and source Lagrangians.
Lower Dimensions and Topologically Nontrivial Cases: Analogous matching constructions are available in (2+1)-dimensional gravities, $f(R,T)$ gravity, and for black holes with non-spherical topology or deficit angles (Pinto et al., 28 Apr 2025, Christiansen et al., 2022, Jusufi, 2022).
Rotating Generalizations: Techniques for constructing regular rotating black holes without complexification (bypassing the Newman–Janis algorithm) have been developed and applied to “spin up” regular static metrics while preserving regularity of curvature invariants (Azreg-Aïnou, 2014).

Table: Core Properties of Electrically Charged Regular Black Holes

Property	Interior	Exterior	Matching/Boundary
Metric	de Sitter, $R$	Reissner–Nordström ( $m,q$ )	Shell at $r_0$ , charge $q$
Energy-Momentum	$p = -\rho_m$	vacuum	Surface charge density
Horizons	none (core)	event, Cauchy horizon	$r_0 \leq r_-$
Regularity	all invariants finite	classical	enforced by matching

These core ideas, as expounded in "Regular black holes: Electrically charged solutions, Reissner-Nordström outside a de Sitter core" (Lemos et al., 2011) and "New solutions of charged regular black holes and their stability" (Uchikata et al., 2012), form the basis for much of the contemporary framework in regular black-hole theory. The analysis of matching, parameter regimes, shell stability, and implications for gravitational collapse constitute fundamental advances in the understanding of how singularities may be consistently removed within classical and semiclassical general relativity.