Quantum suppression of mass inflation in Reissner–Nordström interiors via Wheeler–DeWitt equation

Abstract We construct a canonical quantization, the Wheeler–DeWitt equation, of the interior geometry of static and spherically symmetric black holes in Einstein–Maxwell- $$\Lambda $$ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mml:mi>Λ</mml:mi> </mml:math> framework, focusing on Reissner–Nordström. The wave function of the Wheeler–DeWitt equation for the Reissner–Nordström black hole is set to be on-shell and exhibiting exponential damping away from the classical locus. Horizon boundary conditions for the wave function generate two regimes: a single inward mode from event horizon yields monotonic decay, while superpositions produce either a quantum bounce (single time arrow) or interference-driven “annihilation-to-nothing” (two time arrows). We show that these are generic features of static black hole interiors. Furthermore, the wave function of the Schwarzschild black hole, obtained as the charge-neutral limit of the Reissner–Nordström black hole, is monotonically decaying and no longer unbounded. Moreover, this framework unifies classical and quantum interiors, suggests a quantum gravitational suppression to the mass inflation, and motivates extensions to Kerr and regular black holes.