This study investigates the transduction of visible light to thermal energy using surface plasmon resonant gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) in aqueous suspensions. When irradiated by a continuous wave Ar+ ion laser at 514 nm, the temperature of a 7.9 microliter suspension of 20-nanometer Au NPs increased from an ambient value of 25.5°C to a maximum equilibrium value of 27.7°C after 320 seconds of exposure. The temperature rise was proportional to incident laser power and nanoparticle concentration at low concentrations. The efficiency of transducing incident resonant light to heat was determined by applying an energy balance to obtain a microscale heat-transfer time constant from the transient temperature profile. Measured transduction efficiencies increased from 3.4% to 9.9% by modulating the incident continuous wave irradiation. The study also examines the dynamics of heat transfer in irradiated NP suspensions, including the role of electron-phonon coupling and phonon-phonon interactions in dissipating heat across the particle-matrix interface. The energy balance equation was used to determine the transduction efficiency, which was found to be proportional to the incident laser power and NP concentration. The results support the development of thermal fluid systems that incorporate NPs to transduce light to heat, including miniaturized analytical and manufacturing devices. The study also shows that modulating the incident irradiation reduces nanoparticle aggregation, which increases laser-to-heat transduction efficiency. The maximum attainable heat flux from NP suspensions was found to increase in proportion to laser power and NP concentration. The study concludes that modulating the incident continuous wave irradiation increases the transduction efficiency of resonant light to heat.This study investigates the transduction of visible light to thermal energy using surface plasmon resonant gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) in aqueous suspensions. When irradiated by a continuous wave Ar+ ion laser at 514 nm, the temperature of a 7.9 microliter suspension of 20-nanometer Au NPs increased from an ambient value of 25.5°C to a maximum equilibrium value of 27.7°C after 320 seconds of exposure. The temperature rise was proportional to incident laser power and nanoparticle concentration at low concentrations. The efficiency of transducing incident resonant light to heat was determined by applying an energy balance to obtain a microscale heat-transfer time constant from the transient temperature profile. Measured transduction efficiencies increased from 3.4% to 9.9% by modulating the incident continuous wave irradiation. The study also examines the dynamics of heat transfer in irradiated NP suspensions, including the role of electron-phonon coupling and phonon-phonon interactions in dissipating heat across the particle-matrix interface. The energy balance equation was used to determine the transduction efficiency, which was found to be proportional to the incident laser power and NP concentration. The results support the development of thermal fluid systems that incorporate NPs to transduce light to heat, including miniaturized analytical and manufacturing devices. The study also shows that modulating the incident irradiation reduces nanoparticle aggregation, which increases laser-to-heat transduction efficiency. The maximum attainable heat flux from NP suspensions was found to increase in proportion to laser power and NP concentration. The study concludes that modulating the incident continuous wave irradiation increases the transduction efficiency of resonant light to heat.