Document and Entity Information - shares	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2018	Jul. 24, 2018
Document Information [Line Items]
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Jun. 30, 2018
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2018
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q2
Trading Symbol	VICR
Entity Registrant Name	VICOR CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000751978
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Class A Common Stock [Member]
Document Information [Line Items]
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		28,161,527
Class B Common Stock [Member]
Document Information [Line Items]
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		11,758,218