We examine the structure of the spacetime singularities formed during the radial infall of a coherent stream of charged ‘‘photons’’–a piece of the charged Vaidya metric. Under the assumption of homotheticity, we are able to give an essentially complete account of the singularities which develop. The model derives its usefulness from the very rich structure it exhibits, including the generic appearance of naked singularities.

• Received 24 May 1990

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.43.1798