Generic linearized curvature singularity at the perturbed Kerr Cauchy horizon

Abstract

We prove the precise asymptotics of the spin $-2$ Teukolsky field in the interior and along the Cauchy horizon of a subextremal Kerr black hole. Together with the oscillatory blow-up asymptotics of the spin $+2$ Teukolsky field proven in our previous work arXiv:2409.02670, our result suggests that generic perturbations of a Kerr black hole build up to form a coordinate-independent curvature singularity at the Cauchy horizon. This supports the Strong Cosmic Censorship conjecture in Kerr spacetimes. Unlike in the spin $+2$ case, the spin $-2$ Teukolsky field is regular on the Cauchy horizon and the first term in its asymptotic development vanishes. As a result, the derivation of a precise lower bound for the spin $-2$ field is more delicate than in the spin $+2$ case, and relies on a novel ODE method based on a decomposition of the Teukolsky operator between radial and time derivatives.