Sunlight strikes the surface, of which a fraction is captured, and then a fraction of that is transmitted and then used in some process with also generates heat as a byproduct. Got it.

So... how do I get more total heat energy from that process than I do from sunlight simply striking the surface, being absorbed, and then radiated away?

My thermodynamics is rusty, but if you could explain how I get more energy out of a process than went into it I'd be most interested....