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DFA SHORT-TERM GOVERNMENT PORTFOLIO  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
Risk/Return [Heading] rr_RiskReturnHeading DFA Short-Term Government Portfolio
Objective [Heading] rr_ObjectiveHeading Investment Objective
Objective, Primary [Text Block] rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock

The investment objective of the DFA Short-Term Government Portfolio (the “Short-Term Government Portfolio” or the “Portfolio”) is to maximize total returns from the universe of debt obligations of the U.S. Government and U.S. government agencies. Total return is comprised of income and capital appreciation.
Expense [Heading] rr_ExpenseHeading Fees and Expenses of the Portfolio
Expense Narrative [Text Block] rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock

This table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold or sell shares of the Short-Term Government Portfolio. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and Example below.
Shareholder Fees Caption [Text] rr_ShareholderFeesCaption Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment): None
Operating Expenses Caption [Text] rr_OperatingExpensesCaption Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay eachyear as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Portfolio Turnover [Heading] rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block] rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock

The Short-Term Government Portfolio pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Portfolio shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Portfolio’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Portfolio’s portfolio turnover rate was 226% of the average value of its investment portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate 226.00%
Expense Example [Heading] rr_ExpenseExampleHeading EXAMPLE
Expense Example Narrative [Text Block] rr_ExpenseExampleNarrativeTextBlock

This Example is meant to help you compare the cost of investing in the Short-Term Government Portfolio with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Portfolio for the time periods indicated. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Portfolio’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading] rr_StrategyHeading Principal Investment Strategies
Strategy Narrative [Text Block] rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock

The Short-Term Government Portfolio seeks to maximize total returns from a universe of obligations of the U.S. Government and its agencies maturing in five years or less from the date of settlement. The credit quality of the securities purchased by the Portfolio will be that of the U.S. Government or its agencies. As a non-fundamental policy, under normal circumstances, the Portfolio will invest at least 80% of its net assets in government securities

that mature within five years from the date of settlement. It is the policy of the Portfolio that the maximum length of maturity of investments will not exceed five years from the date of settlement. In making these purchase decisions, if the expected term premium is greater for longer-term securities in the eligible maturity range, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP (the “Advisor”) will focus investment in that longer-term area, otherwise, the portfolio will focus investment in the shorter-term area of the eligible maturity range. The Advisor expects that the Portfolio’s average portfolio maturity and average portfolio duration will be three years or less. Duration is a measure of the sensitivity of a security’s price to changes in interest rates. The longer a security’s duration, the more sensitive it will be to interest rates. The Portfolio will also acquire repurchase agreements backed by U.S. government securities. The Portfolio may also invest in money market funds. The Portfolio is authorized to invest more than 25% of its total assets in U.S. Treasury bonds, bills and notes and obligations of federal agencies and instrumentalities.

The Short-Term Government Portfolio may purchase or sell futures contracts and options on futures contracts, to hedge its interest rate exposure or for non-hedging purposes, such as a substitute for direct investment or to increase or decrease market exposure based on actual or expected cash inflows to or outflows from the Portfolio.

The Short-Term Government Portfolio may lend its portfolio securities to generate additional income.
Risk [Heading] rr_RiskHeading Principal Risks
Risk Narrative [Text Block] rr_RiskNarrativeTextBlock

Because the value of your investment in the Short-Term Government Portfolio will fluctuate, there is the risk that you will lose money. An investment in the Portfolio is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. The following is a description of principal risks of investing in the Portfolio.

Market Risk: Even a long-term investment approach cannot guarantee a profit. Economic, political, and issuer-specific events will cause the value of securities, and the Portfolio that owns them, to rise or fall.

Interest Rate Risk: Fixed income securities are subject to interest rate risk because the prices of fixed income securities tend to move in the opposite direction of interest rates. When interest rates rise, fixed income security prices fall. During periods of very low or negative interest rates, the Portfolio may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates. When interest rates fall, fixed income security prices rise. In general, fixed income securities with longer maturities are more sensitive to changes in interest rates.

Credit Risk: Credit risk is the risk that the issuer of a security may be unable to make interest payments and/or repay principal when due. A downgrade to an issuer’s credit rating or a perceived change in an issuer’s financial strength may affect a security’s value, and thus, impact the Portfolio’s performance. Government agency obligations have different levels of credit support and, therefore, different degrees of credit risk. Securities issued by agencies and instrumentalities of the U.S. Government that are supported by the full faith and credit of the United States, such as the Federal Housing Administration and Ginnie Mae, present little credit risk. Other securities issued by agencies and instrumentalities sponsored by the U.S. Government, that are supported only by the issuer’s right to borrow from the U.S. Treasury, subject to certain limitations, and securities issued by agencies and instrumentalities sponsored by the U.S. Government that are sponsored by the credit of the issuing agencies, such as Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, are subject to a greater degree of credit risk. U.S. government agency securities issued or guaranteed by the credit of the agency may still involve a risk of non-payment of principal and/or interest.

Income Risk: Income risk is the risk that falling interest rates will cause the Portfolio’s income to decline because, among other reasons, the proceeds from maturing short-term securities in its portfolio may be reinvested in lower-yielding securities.

Liquidity Risk: Liquidity risk exists when particular portfolio investments are difficult to purchase or sell. To the extent that the Portfolio holds illiquid investments, the Portfolio’s performance may be reduced due to an inability to sell the investments at opportune prices or times. Liquid portfolio investments may become illiquid or less liquid after purchase by the Portfolio due to low trading volume, adverse investor perceptions and/or other

market developments. Liquidity risk includes the risk that the Portfolio will experience significant net redemptions at a time when it cannot find willing buyers for its portfolio securities or can only sell its portfolio securities at a material loss or at increased costs. Liquidity risk can be more pronounced in periods of market turmoil or in situations where ownership of shares of the Portfolio are concentrated in one or a few investors.

Derivatives Risk: Derivatives are instruments, such as futures contracts, and options thereon, whose value is derived from that of other assets, rates or indices. Derivatives can be used for hedging (attempting to reduce risk by offsetting one investment position with another) or non-hedging purposes. Hedging with derivatives may increase expenses, and there is no guarantee that a hedging strategy will work. While hedging can reduce or eliminate losses, it can also reduce or eliminate gains or cause losses if the market moves in a manner different from that anticipated by the Portfolio or if the cost of the derivative outweighs the benefit of the hedge. The use of derivatives for non-hedging purposes may be considered to carry more risk than other types of investments. When the Portfolio uses derivatives, the Portfolio will be directly exposed to the risks of those derivatives. Derivative instruments are subject to a number of risks including counterparty, liquidity, interest rate, market, credit and management risks, as well as the risk of improper valuation. Changes in the value of a derivative may not correlate perfectly with the underlying asset, rate or index, and the Portfolio could lose more than the principal amount invested.

Securities Lending Risk: Securities lending involves the risk that the borrower may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. As a result, the Portfolio may lose money and there may be a delay in recovering the loaned securities. The Portfolio could also lose money if it does not recover the securities and/or the value of the collateral falls, including the value of investments made with cash collateral. Securities lending also may have certain adverse tax consequences.

Operational Risk: Operational risks include human error, changes in personnel, system changes, faults in communication, and failures in systems, technology, or processes. Various operational events or circumstances are outside the Advisor’s control, including instances at third parties. The Portfolio and the Advisor seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures. However, these measures do not address every possible risk and may be inadequate to address these risks.

Cyber Security Risk: The Portfolio’s and its service providers’ use of internet, technology and information systems may expose the Portfolio to potential risks linked to cyber security breaches of those technological or information systems. Cyber security breaches, amongst other things, could allow an unauthorized party to gain access to proprietary information, customer data, or fund assets, or cause the Portfolio and/or its service providers to suffer data corruption or lose operational functionality.
Risk Lose Money [Text] rr_RiskLoseMoney Because the value of your investment in the Short-Term Government Portfolio will fluctuate, there is the risk that you will lose money.
RIsk Not Insured [Text] rr_RiskNotInsured An investment in the Portfolio is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading] rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading Performance
Performance Narrative [Text Block] rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock

The bar chart and table immediately following illustrate the variability of the Short-Term Government Portfolio’s returns and are meant to provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Portfolio. The bar chart shows the changes in the Portfolio’s performance from year to year. The table illustrates how annualized one year, five year and ten year returns, both before and after taxes, compare with those of a broad measure of market performance. The Portfolio’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. Updated performance information for the Portfolio can be obtained by visiting https://www.dimensional.com/us-en/funds.

The after-tax returns presented in the table for the Short-Term Government Portfolio are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown in the table. In addition, the after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold shares of the Portfolio through tax-advantaged arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
Performance Information Illustrates Variability of Returns [Text] rr_PerformanceInformationIllustratesVariabilityOfReturns The bar chart and table immediately following illustrate the variability of the Short-Term Government Portfolio’s returns and are meant to provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Portfolio. The bar chart shows the changes in the Portfolio’s performance from year to year.
Performance Availability Website Address [Text] rr_PerformanceAvailabilityWebSiteAddress https://www.dimensional.com/us-en/funds
Performance Past Does Not Indicate Future [Text] rr_PerformancePastDoesNotIndicateFuture The Portfolio’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results.
Bar Chart [Heading] rr_BarChartHeading DFA Short-Term Government Portfolio Institutional Class Shares—Total Returns
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block] rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock

January 2013-December 2022

 

 

 

Highest Quarter
1.67% (1/16–3/16)

  

Lowest Quarter
-3.58% (1/22–3/22)

Highest Quarterly Return, Label rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel Highest Quarter
Highest Quarterly Return, Date rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate Mar. 31, 2016
Highest Quarterly Return rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn 1.67%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel Lowest Quarter
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate Mar. 31, 2022
Lowest Quarterly Return rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn (3.58%)
Performance Table Heading rr_PerformanceTableHeading Annualized Returns (%)Periods ending December 31, 2022
Index No Deduction for Fees, Expenses, Taxes [Text] rr_IndexNoDeductionForFeesExpensesTaxes (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses, or taxes)
Performance Table Uses Highest Federal Rate rr_PerformanceTableUsesHighestFederalRate The after-tax returns presented in the table for the Short-Term Government Portfolio are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes.
Performance Table Not Relevant to Tax Deferred rr_PerformanceTableNotRelevantToTaxDeferred In addition, the after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold shares of the Portfolio through tax-advantaged arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
DFA SHORT-TERM GOVERNMENT PORTFOLIO | ICE BofA 1-5 Year US Treasury & Agency Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses, or taxes)  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 (5.25%) [1]
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 0.66% [1]
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 0.71% [1]
DFA SHORT-TERM GOVERNMENT PORTFOLIO | DFA SHORT-TERM GOVERNMENT PORTFOLIO - INSTITUTIONAL CLASS  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
Management Fee rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets 0.14% [2]
Other Expenses rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets 0.02% [2]
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses rr_ExpensesOverAssets 0.16% [2]
Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year rr_ExpenseExampleYear01 $ 16
Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear03 52
Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear05 90
Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear10 $ 205
Annual Return 2013 rr_AnnualReturn2013 (0.45%)
Annual Return 2014 rr_AnnualReturn2014 1.25%
Annual Return 2015 rr_AnnualReturn2015 0.99%
Annual Return 2016 rr_AnnualReturn2016 0.99%
Annual Return 2017 rr_AnnualReturn2017 0.51%
Annual Return 2018 rr_AnnualReturn2018 1.17%
Annual Return 2019 rr_AnnualReturn2019 2.52%
Annual Return 2020 rr_AnnualReturn2020 0.39%
Annual Return 2021 rr_AnnualReturn2021 (1.27%)
Annual Return 2022 rr_AnnualReturn2022 (4.41%)
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 (4.41%)
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 (0.35%)
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 0.15%
DFA SHORT-TERM GOVERNMENT PORTFOLIO | DFA SHORT-TERM GOVERNMENT PORTFOLIO - INSTITUTIONAL CLASS | After Taxes on Distributions  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 (5.12%)
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 (0.81%)
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 (0.31%)
DFA SHORT-TERM GOVERNMENT PORTFOLIO | DFA SHORT-TERM GOVERNMENT PORTFOLIO - INSTITUTIONAL CLASS | After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Portfolio Shares  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 (2.61%)
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 (0.45%)
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 (0.07%)
[1] ICE BofA index data copyright 2022 ICE Data Indices, LLC.
[2] The “Management Fee” and “Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses” have been adjusted to reflect the decrease in the management fee payable by the Short-Term Government Portfolio from 0.16% to 0.14% effective as of February 28, 2023.