Investments (Details)	0 Months Ended	12 Months Ended			0 Months Ended	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended					1 Months Ended
	Sep. 13, 2011 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2011 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2010 USD ($)	Nov. 28, 2011 Intermetallics Japan	Jan. 31, 2012 Intermetallics Japan JPY (¥)	Dec. 31, 2012 Intermetallics Japan USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 Intermetallics Japan JPY (¥)	Nov. 28, 2011 Intermetallics Japan Molycorp	Nov. 28, 2011 Intermetallics Japan Daido	Nov. 28, 2011 Intermetallics Japan Mitsubishi	Jun. 30, 2012 Keli USD ($)	Jun. 12, 2012 Keli USD ($)	Jun. 12, 2012 TMT USD ($)	Jun. 12, 2012 Ingal Stade USD ($)	Jun. 12, 2012 Atlantic Metals USD ($)	Jun. 12, 2012 Northern Nano Technology USD ($)
Intermetallics Japan - IMJ
Investment in Boulder Wind Power's Series B convertible preferred stock	$ 20,000,000	$ 0	$ 20,000,000	$ 0
Capital contribution ratio (as a percent)									30.00%	35.50%	34.50%
Capital contribution						2,500,000,000
Exchange of shares, time period					12 months
Capital contribution		33,044,000	0	0			27,700,000	2,200,000,000
Gain /(Loss) from the entity's proportional ownership in joint venture		(3,490,000)	0	0			(2,400,000)					(1,200,000)
Ownership in Subsidiary (as a percent)													25.00%	33.00%	50.00%	19.50%	7.00%
Fair Value of the Equity Investment of a Business Acquisition													$ 12,200,000	$ 1,600,000	$ 4,900,000	$ 1,400,000	$ 900,000