| Income Taxes - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $) | 3 Months Ended | |
|---|---|---|
| Mar. 31, 2015 | Mar. 31, 2014 | |
| Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract] | ||
| Provision for income taxes | $ 204,000us-gaap_IncomeTaxExpenseBenefit | $ 108,000us-gaap_IncomeTaxExpenseBenefit | 
| Unrecognized tax benefits | 100,000us-gaap_UnrecognizedTaxBenefitsPeriodIncreaseDecrease | |
| Period of change of unrecognized tax benefits | 12 months | |
| Accrued interest on accrued penalties associated with uncertain tax positions | 50,000mxl_UnrecognizedAccruedInterestOnUnrecognizedTaxBenefitIncomeTaxPenalties | |
| Accrued penalties associated with uncertain tax position | $ 20,000mxl_UnrecognizedTaxBenefitsIncomeTaxesAndPenaltiesAccrued | |
| X | ||||||||||
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- Definition Period of change of unrecognized tax benefits. No definition available. 
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| X | ||||||||||
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- Definition Amount of accrued interest on an underpayment of income taxes and/or penalties related to a tax position claimed or expected to be claimed in a tax return. No definition available. 
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| X | ||||||||||
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- Definition Amount accrued for an underpayment of income taxes and/or penalties related to a tax position claimed or expected to be claimed in the tax return. No definition available. 
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| X | ||||||||||
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- Details 
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| X | ||||||||||
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- Definition Amount of current income tax expense (benefit) and deferred income tax expense (benefit) pertaining to continuing operations. Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef 
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| X | ||||||||||
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- Definition The net amount of all increases and decreases in unrecognized tax benefits for the period. Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef 
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