Segment Information and Foreign Operations - Product Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2018	Mar. 31, 2017
Revenue by product type
Revenue	$ 24,419	$ 20,616
Substrates
Revenue by product type
Revenue	19,364	16,609
Raw Materials And Others
Revenue by product type
Revenue	$ 5,055	$ 4,007

Amount, excluding tax collected from customer, of revenue from satisfaction of performance obligation by transferring promised good or service to customer. Tax collected from customer is tax assessed by governmental authority that is both imposed on and concurrent with specific revenue-producing transaction, including, but not limited to, sales, use, value added and excise.

No definition available.

Name:	axti_RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax
Namespace Prefix:	axti_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	credit
Period Type:	duration