Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies | 1. DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Nature of the Business Basis of Presentation The accompanying Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the audited financial statements of the Company included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014 filed with the SEC. Principles of Consolidation Cash and Cash Equivalents Investments Revenue Recognition Pursuant to the Company’s standard terms of sale, revenue is recognized when title to the goods and risk of loss transfers to customers and there are no remaining obligations that will affect the customers’ final acceptance of the sale. Generally, the Company’s standard terms of sale define the transfer of title and risk of loss to occur upon shipment to the respective customer. The Company generally does not maintain any post-shipping obligations to the recipients of the products. No installation, calibration or testing of this equipment is performed by the Company subsequent to shipment to the customer in order to render it operational. Revenue includes shipping and handling revenue of $271 and $236 for the three months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively, and $518 and $463 for the six months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. Cost of freight for shipments made to customers is included in cost of revenue. Sales and other value-added taxes collected from customers and remitted to governmental authorities are excluded from revenue. The Company sells its products primarily through a direct sales force, with certain international markets sold through distributors. Terms of sale are generally consistent for both end-users and distributors except that payment terms are generally net 30 days for end-users and net 60 days for distributors. Sales Returns and Allowances Allowance for Doubtful Accounts Receivable Inventories Inventories consist of the following: June 30, 2015 December 31, Raw materials $ 5,286 $ 4,429 Work in process 1,251 1,397 Finished goods 9,536 8,431 Inventories $ 16,073 $ 14,257 Property and Equipment Generators and other capital equipment (such as the Company’s switchbox units and cryosurgical consoles) are loaned at no cost to direct customers that use the Company’s disposable products. Depreciation of such assets is included in cost of revenue. The estimated useful lives of this equipment are based on anticipated usage by customers and the timing and impact of expected new technology rollouts by the Company. To the extent the Company experiences changes in the usage of this equipment or introduces new technologies, the estimated useful lives of this equipment may change in a future period. Depreciation related to these generators was $673 and $498 for the three months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively, and $1,293 and $959 for the six months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. As of June 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, the net carrying amount of loaned equipment included in net property and equipment in the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets was $4,799 and $4,141, respectively. The Company reviews property and equipment for impairment using its best estimates based on reasonable and supportable assumptions and projections. Intangible Assets Goodwill— Other Current Liabilities and Current Maturities of Capital Leases— Other Income The Company recorded net foreign currency transaction (losses) gains of ($46) and $16 for the three months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively, and ($209) and $21 for the six months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively, primarily in connection with settlements of its intercompany balance with AtriCure Europe. The Company periodically is awarded grants to support research and development activities or education activities. The Company recognizes grant income when the funds are earned. The Company recorded grant income of $0 and $137 during the three months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. Grant income of $35 and $500 was recorded for the six month periods ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. The Company historically issued stock options to non-employee consultants as a form of compensation for services provided to the Company. Because the non-employee options require settlement by the Company’s delivery of registered shares and because the tax withholding provisions in the awards allow the options to be partially net-cash settled, these options, when vested, are no longer eligible for equity classification and are, thus, subsequently accounted for as derivative liabilities under FASB ASC 815, “Derivatives and Hedging” (ASC 815) until the awards are ultimately either exercised or forfeited. Accordingly, the vested non-employee options are classified as liabilities and remeasured at fair value through earnings at each reporting period. During the three months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, $44 and ($19), respectively, of expense (income) was recorded as a result of the remeasurement of the fair value of these fully vested stock options. During the six months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, $57 and ($117), respectively, of expense (income) was recorded as a result of the remeasurement of the fair value of these fully vested stock options. Taxes The Company’s estimate of the valuation allowance for deferred tax assets requires it to make significant estimates and judgments about its future operating results. Deferred tax assets are reduced by valuation allowances if, based on the consideration of all available evidence, it is more-likely-than-not that some portion of the deferred tax asset will not be realized. Significant weight is given to evidence that can be objectively verified. The Company evaluates deferred tax assets on a quarterly basis to determine if valuation allowances are required by considering all available evidence. Deferred tax assets are realized by having sufficient future taxable income to allow the related tax benefits to reduce taxes otherwise payable. The sources of taxable income that may be available to realize the benefit of deferred tax assets are future reversals of existing taxable temporary differences, future taxable income, exclusive of reversing temporary differences and carryforwards, taxable income in carry-back years and tax planning strategies that are both prudent and feasible. In evaluating whether to record a valuation allowance, the applicable accounting standards deem that the existence of cumulative losses in recent years is a significant piece of objectively verifiable negative evidence that must be overcome by objectively verifiable positive evidence to avoid the need to record a valuation allowance. The Company has recorded a full valuation allowance against its net deferred tax assets as it is more-likely-than-not that the benefit of the deferred tax assets will not be recognized in future periods. A provision of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act enacted in 2010, as amended (Affordable Care Act), requires manufacturers of medical devices to pay an excise tax on all U.S. medical device sales. The Company’s expense related to the medical device excise tax, which was recorded in cost of revenue, was $149 and $116 for the three months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively, and $304 and $230 for the six months ended June 30, 2015 and 2014, respectively. Net Loss Per Share Comprehensive Loss and Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) consisted of the following: Three Months Ended June 30, Six Months Ended June 30, 2015 2014 2015 2014 Total accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income at beginning of period $ (798 ) $ (139 ) $ (348 ) $ (139 ) Unrealized Gains on Investments Balance at beginning of period $ (17 ) $ (8 ) $ (54 ) $ (6 ) Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications 2 (11 ) 39 (13 ) Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive income to other income on the statement of operations — — — — Balance at end of period $ (15 ) $ (19 ) $ (15 ) $ (19 ) Foreign Currency Translation Adjustment Balance at beginning of period $ (781 ) $ (131 ) $ (294 ) $ (133 ) Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications 392 (44 ) 68 (47 ) Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive income to other income on the statement of operations (139 ) 16 (302 ) 21 Balance at end of period $ (528 ) $ (159 ) $ (528 ) $ (159 ) Total accumulated other comprehensive loss at end of period $ (543 ) $ (178 ) $ (543 ) $ (178 ) Research and Development Advertising Costs — Share-Based Compensation FASB ASC 718 requires companies to estimate the fair value of share-based payment awards on the date of grant using an option-pricing model. The value of the portion of the award that is ultimately expected to vest is recognized as expense over the requisite service periods in the Company’s Condensed Consolidated Statement of Operations and Comprehensive Loss. The expense has been reduced for estimated forfeitures. FASB ASC 718 requires forfeitures to be estimated at the time of grant and revised, if necessary, in subsequent periods if actual forfeitures differ from those estimates. The Company estimates the fair value of time-based options on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model (Black-Scholes model). The Company’s determination of fair value of share-based payment awards on the date of grant using an option-pricing model is affected by the Company’s stock price, as well as assumptions regarding a number of subjective variables. These variables include, but are not limited to, the Company’s expected stock price volatility over the term of the awards and actual and projected employee stock option exercise behaviors. The fair value of market-based performance option grants is estimated at the date of grant using a Monte-Carlo simulation. The value of the portion of the award that is ultimately expected to vest is recognized as expense over the requisite service periods in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss. The Company estimates the fair value of restricted stock based upon the grant date closing market price of the Company’s common stock. The Company’s determination of fair value is affected by the Company’s stock price as well as assumptions regarding the number of shares expected to be granted. The Company also has an employee stock purchase plan (ESPP or the Plan) which is available to all eligible employees as defined by the Plan. Under the ESPP, shares of the Company’s common stock may be purchased at a discount. The Company estimates the number of shares to be purchased under the Plan and records compensation expense based upon the fair value of the stock at the beginning of the purchase period using the Black-Scholes model. Use of Estimates Fair Value Disclosures |