Please always include a complete small test document that shows the problem. The standard result is not as you show, I get this output from \documentclass{article} \begin{document} \begin{equation}\hat{I}\end{equation} \end{document} so the problem is with code you have not shown.
– David CarlisleOct 04 '21 at 07:00
\mathrelwould help here? – Werner Oct 04 '21 at 03:56\documentclass{article} \begin{document} \begin{equation}\hat{I}\end{equation} \end{document}so the problem is with code you have not shown. – David Carlisle Oct 04 '21 at 07:00