The present invention provides an interleaved IDT that is connected to and overlaps adjacent IDTs. In particular, the interleaved IDT may be connected to both an input IDT and an output IDT via corresponding bus bars. The first bus bar of the interleaved IDT is connected to the bus bar of the input IDT, and the other bus bar of the interleaved IDT is connected to a bus bar of the output IDT. The interleaved IDT is coupled electrically to the respective input and output ports of the overall surface acoustic wave architecture. As such, the bus bars of the respective input and output IDTs are effectively extended, such that the adjacent edges of the respective input and output IDTs partially overlap one another in an interdigitated fashion at the interleaved IDT.